Moving forwards, once again
by Nerevaire
Summary: The pack continue thier journey to Rakuen, but along the way encounter obstacles that grow more bizzare each time. Will they all make it to Rakuen in one piece? And yeah, I suck at summuries. (Romance later)
1. Default Chapter

Alright, this is my first attempt at this…

Disclaimer (None of these characters belong to me, except Mr. Stinger and the unclassified)

Thanks

A full moon above dominated the night sky. Once in a month and a day apart it appeared in its full form. Confident, proud and hopeful. Tsume gazed in wonderment from his viewing spot away from everyone else as usual.

The glowing orb filling him with a new found energy. Others watched also, Kiba basked in the radiant glows yearning for its warm presence. Hige and Toboe laughed and joked as they were overcome with happiness.

Everything seemed perfect, flawless at the moment. Tsume sighed he knew it had to end, he looked over to his companions, they all seemed content. Even Kiba, which was generally an odd thing. He growled as he watched Hige swallow down the last scrap of food they had left. "Why do I continue to accompany this set of fools?" he said to no-one. "What could they ever offer me that I couldn't attain myself?"

Tsume flinched in anger at the loud laughter coming from below. Digging his claws into the earth attempting to calm himself, his eyes fell to Toboe. The youngest of the pack, the weakest. Although Toboe didn't like to hear that. He watched the younger wolf in interest. Possibly the member of the pack he was closest to. Tsume laughed to himself silently. That was definitely something he needed to keep to himself.

"Tsume?" Came a concerned voice from the camp fire. Toboe had stopped joking and abruptly set his attention Tsume.

"What?!" Tsume snarled out in response a lot harder than he had meant to. Toboe jumped a little but continued.

"Are you alright? You seem a little preoccupied tonight."

"Oh god, he's worrying about me again. When will he get the idea no-one cares for me?" He said silently to himself. Tsume opened his mouth to throw some abuse at Toboe, but Kiba intervened.

"We'd better get moving." He started, not wanting to say a large amount of words. For it was Kiba's nature to be strong yet silent. A distinct moaning came from Hige's direction.

"Kiba, already? We've had about two hours rest!" He said leaning further back into the snow." Besides, I don't think chibi could manage another step." He pushed Toboe a little to make his point. Toboe stood up almost immediately to defend himself.

"I'm fine, let's just go." The grin melted off hige's face and turned into a disappointed frown. Tsume looked thoroughly shoked.Kiba smiled, only slightly though. He didn't want to show too much happiness. Tsume agreed reluctantly and they started off on the trail of Paradise once again.

After a while of walking, and countless occasions of stopping to wait for Toboe. The pack arrived at a place they weren't quite expecting. A large intimidating city loomed above them in twigh light of the night. Kiba stopped and turned to his exhausted pack.

"Whatever danger awaits us in there is far too strong for us right now. We should rest and continue in the morning. Two relieved sighs came from Toboe and Hige but Tsume merely frowned. A city... the one place Tsume felt truly in his element. He wasn't going to wait another couple of hours just so the others could rest.

"If we go now we could find food and shelter!" Tsume suggested to Kiba.

"I doubt we'll make it that far..." Kiba replied as he changed to his white wolf form and lay down. Tsume snarled loudly, making it clear to everyone he was displeased. He glared at Hige he referred to as 'the fat one.

'"Aren't you hungry?" he questioned Hige. The tan wolf only gave a feeble shrug. "You're always hungry! Why not now?!" he yelled becoming increasingly angry.

"Tsume, calm down." Toboe said trying to calm the situation. His big golden eyes set only on Tsume. However this just enraged Tsume more. Burning full of anger he started to walk towards the city. Toboe watched him, he wanted to follow him, but was afraid of making matters worse. Hige and Kiba had fallen asleep, a little too close to each other, Toboe thought. But it was quite cold he supposed. He laid his muzzle in the snow searching for sleep, but no matter how hard he attempted he just couldn't find it. The same thoughts flew through his mind

"Tsume, Tsume, Tsume. I wonder where Tsume is."

Not wanting to wait another moment, Toboe threw his tired body into a hard run...

Tsume walked for a quite while through the winter wonderland. Before he turned round to see if anyone had followed. Much to his surprise nobody had. Not even Toboe, which disappointed him a little for reasons he was oblivious to.

He slugged on through the half melted snow, awaiting the entry to his city paradise. It came soon enough, and Tsume was thrilled by the chaotic atmosphere beckoning him in. He breathed in ghastly car fumes and embraced the warm city heat. Everything there intrigued him, the tall, deserted skyscrapers, the wild raging traffic, everything was to his liking. This truly was a place where he belonged.

His stomach reminded him that he hadn't eaten for the past day and a half. Many stalls bearing exotic new scents lured Tsume in to discover what was behind them. And sure enough the answer was food. Piles and piles of strangely shaped meats. A large balding man watched over his stock carefully incase thieves lurked about. Tsume watched him closely, waiting for the appropriate moment to make his move. A small woman approached his stall timidly.

"Excuse me, sir?" she asked shyly. Tsume grinned, now was his chance. Crouching down in his wolf form he slowly made his way underneath the stall, paying great attention to the conversation going outside. He bumped his head suddenly, on a hard tray of circular shaped food. He sniffed at it inquisitively; it smelt good in a weird sense. Like meat, but it certainly didn't look or feel like meat.

"Alright Miss, glad I could of service to you." the shopkeeper had finished his sale and went back to his hawk eye watching game. Crap! Tsume thought to himself. He had only one choice. Quite abruptly he rammed his way from underneath the stall and ran with as much speed as he could muster. Of course this didn't go unnoticed by the shop keeper.

"Get back here you disgusting mutt!" a roar erupted from the shopkeeper's mouth. Tsume didn't hear it, he was too far away. Atop a skyscraper where he could be totally and completely alone...

Meanwhile...

Toboe had entered the city only a few hours ago, but still no sign of Tsume. He'd received many frightened stares from the city's inhabitants since he was in his wolf form. But he was too tired to change back to his human form. Some passerby's attitudes were different though. A few had stopped to stroke him, which he found thoroughly pleasurable.

He'd also had a close encounter with a dog warden on the other side of town. He wouldn't be back there in a hurry. He wondered what the others were up to, it was nearly morning now. They could possibly be looking for both him and Tsume.

"We'll find each other eventually..." he whispered.

"There you are! Thought you could escape Mr. Stinger, did you?"

Toboe raised his head and jumped back in fear. The warden had returned, covered in the remains of litter that Toboe had managed to knock him into and escaped before. He bore an evil slim grin on that wrinkled old face.

"Ohhh, scared you, didn't I?" He got closer raising the gun from underneath his arm." Come here... Come... I won't hurt you."

The young brown wolf backed away growling slightly, he wasn't going to be afraid of one pathetic human. Still the human persisted, gradually coming closer and closer with each stride. His smirk broadening every time he saw Toboe back away. He couldn't take it anymore. Swiftly turning around Toboe ran at full pelt, after only a few seconds he collided with a wall. It was a dead end. He was cornered.

Tsume watched in amusement as a brown speck was finally captured. "Stupid dogs..." he said out aloud."Stupid creatures..." he laughed.

A sharp missile in bedded itself into Toboe's fur, it didn't hurt that much but still it made him feel so strange. He noticed a pipe just about big enough for him to fit through. Mr. Stinger, who currently looked like he'd been given all the dogs to torture in the world, grasped a clump of Toboe's hair.

"Arghhhh!" Toboe yowled, sinking his teeth into Mr. Stinger's scabbed plagued hang. It seemed like most of his victims had the same idea.

"Oh! Now this IS getting interesting." Tsume said deviously from above. He much wanted to see this dog slaughter that pest of a human. To his disappointment though, it attempted to run away. Balancing on only its front paws while it dragged the back two.

"Tranquilizer." Tsume stated he knew the dog wouldn't make it. Sighing Tsume changed to his wolf form and jumped down onto Mr. Stinger.

The world around Toboe was blurring and shaking, he felt as is he was caught in great gust of wind, but his destination still remained clearly in front of him. His back legs seemed to have fallen asleep. Toboe longed to fall asleep himself but knew he had to escape. From out of nowhere a grey blur attacked Mr. Stinger, giving him the chance to run. And he did...

Chapter 2 coming soon depending on response


	2. Chapter 2

Here's chapter 2, a little late because of maths courswork. God I hate that stuff.

Thl, thank you for the review. Greatly appreciated :)

Chapter 2….

"They're gone?" Hige scratched his head in puzzlement and looked off in the direction towards the city. Kiba nodded. Both wolves had awoken to find their pack of four had mysteriously dwindled down to just the two of them. "What? Both of them?"

"Yes." Kiba answered coolly distracted by the thought of paradise. However he continued "It's obvious where they've both gone. Tsume couldn't restrain himself from excitement of the city."

"And Toboe?" Hige asked oblivious to how obvious the answer was

"He followed Tsume, and they're probably in there now creating more problems for us." Kiba finished with a long depressed sigh. The visions and dreams of the Cheza in peril had finally taken their toll on the relatively calm leader. He could feel her essence all around him manipulating his thoughts away from the other members of his pack.

He was quickly awoken from his world of dreams by a loud rumbling noise coming from the direction of Hige.

"Ahh, I think we'd better head out to the city as well." Hige said rubbing his stomach in an attempt to comfort it. Kiba stared at his companion sharply; knowing going to the city would only delay his search for Cheza longer. He finally lowered his eyes and nodded. Turning into their wolf forms they set off not knowing what they were running into.

Further on into the inner bowels of the city another choice was being made...

Mr. Stinger winced as the wild grey wolf increased the pressure of his paw on the human's back. It glared at him, stone, yellow eyes full of hatred. He couldn't understand why it had caused such a scene over a lanky brown mutt. Which he'd watched in dismay escape through a pipe. He'd wanted revenge so much on that particular dog, but then again he wanted revenge on most dogs. As they were a threat to mankind in his opinion. An intimidating growling noise reminded him of his present problem. He had to get the crazed beast off him somehow. He searched around his surroundings for an answer.

Tsume inhaled and exhaled deeply purposely forcing his breathing to sound fierce. He'd managed to destruct the warden's plans of adding another victim to his collection.

"That dog looked so familiar..." he muttered underneath his breath. He wondered if it had actually managed to escape through the pipes, city pipes were usually like long complicated mazes that lead you to nothing but sewage. It couldn't have gone too far, he could still catch it. Although it left him clueless why he would even want to. He eyed his prey severely, nothing had changed. The helpless life form hadn't moved but he noticed its eyes darting around like irritated flies. Tsume smirked "There is no escape..."

A sudden ringing noise agitated Tsume's hearing; it steadily grew louder remaining in its generic rhythm. Soon it was accompanied by a chorus of panting and cursing sounds. As it got closer, Tsume glanced towards the deserted alleyway from the corner of his curious eye. Nothing, absolutely nothing. Maybe he was just imagining things. His theory was soon dismissed as a tall figure stumbled clumsily round the corner.

"Kian! You idiot, over here!" Tsume brought his attention back to Mr. Stinger, who was now yelling to what looked like his apprentice. Or at least he thought. A strange looking man really, long and slim in build but not the slightest bit elegant. He bore disheveled garments that were carelessly slung around his pathetic excuse of a life form. The colours of his hair confused Tsume the most; an acidic green colour outlined with blue and red streaks. Definitely an unusual thing. Despite all this, Tsume knew quite confidently he could see Kian off with a small amount of force. However Mr. Stinger still needed to be taught a lesson.

"Uh... yes s-sir I'm hurrying!" Kian stuttered his trembling hands reloading the tranquilizer gun. Tsume watched him plotting his next move; he had to admit this was quite humorous. Never before in his life had he seen such a display of disaster.

"Alright sir, you want me to get 'im?" Kian asked staring nervously at Tsume. "He's err... quite big, isn't he sir?"

"Hurry up and get this monster off me! We'll discuss what will happen to him later." Mr. Stinger yelled at his witless apprentice. Kian nodded and shakily prepared himself, he'd never shot a dog before. This was only his first day as Mr. Stinger's assistant and already he'd caused enough problems to last a lifetime. He didn't want to mess up this time. Tightening his grip on the gun he closed his eyes and pulled the trigger. Tsume pricked his ears up at the sudden noise and practically flew out of the way.

"Maybe, I've had enough fun for today. Besides I better get back to the others." he mused to himself. Without another thought he spurred off towards the entrance of the pipes. He could wait there until Mr. Stinger and Kian had abandoned their dog torture session.

"Kian, you moron! Get him! Get the bloody creature!" shrieked Mr. Stinger having made a speedy recovery from his shock. Kian started after Tsume but within a few strides he'd toppled over his own feet and was sent crashing to the floor.

"Kian! Get up, get up! Hurry, he's getting away!" he cried in a last desperate attempt to motivate his apprentice. He scouted round looking for the grey scarred wolf. Nothing. "Damn it Kian! That's the third time today you've let one escape."

Kian pulled himself into a sitting position, glaring idly at the floor in shame." I'm sorry sir, I'm so sorry..."

A new scent invoked Hige's nose and encouraged the tan wolf to increase his speed. Kiba ran at his side reluctantly wishing they could be running in the opposite direction towards Cheza. The city was vaguely visible through a vale of mist, they'd almost reached it. Kiba noticed Hige's change in pace and pushed himself into a harder run. Snow clouding his vision as he battled with the aggressive blizzard, which had slowly crept up to the pair. He had to admit it; the search for rakuen grew harder each day. Growing weary from fighting through each new problem only to be confronted with yet another. Maybe he just wasn't up for it. "I should just stand and watch." he whispered to himself. As much as he wanted to find Cheza and take the others to Rakuen, he no longer had the thrill to entangle his doubts. Truly he was very depressed, and he'd decided to stop and tell Hige. However his plan was thwarted.

"Heh, looks like we're finally here!" Hige said with relief, turning to face the white wolf. He noticed the miserable expression on Kiba's face. Of course he didn't expect him to show at least a remote sense of excitement, which was his nature. But he just looked so sad and defeated.

"Good, took long enough." Kiba replied raising his head to take in the city's atmosphere. Hige was watching him warily.

"Are you alright?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing."

"Nothing, nothing at all. I'm fine." Kiba didn't want to worry the only upbeat wolf of the pack. He was sure without Hige he'd go insane.

"If you say so. I'm just worried about the others." Hige was sure Kiba had lied but he wasn't going to pursue the matter further.

"Tsume can look after himself, or so he says. And Toboe will be with him as we speak. Even if he isn't, he's not an idiot. He's knows how to keep himself from any trouble." Kiba was astonished by the amount of words he'd just used. He hadn't spoken so much since he'd been with Cheza.

"I hope you're right, we'd better start searching for some food." Hige said with a pleading grin.

"We should..."Hige followed Kiba's lead in to the city labyrinth. They walked for some time around the winding alleyways seeking a source of food. Keeping to their Human forms much to Kiba's disappointment, they'd asked a few strangers for directions. The people around here seemed to be generally normal; they treated others as they treated them. It was a truce. The city itself was reeking in neglect. Most buildings had boarded up windows and clumps missing out of them. Every now and then there was some sort of shop selling items useless to the two wolves. Hige's stomach had started to wail hysterically trying to attract its owner's attention. It had succeeded.

"Kiba, look over there!" Hige said pushing his companion in the shoulder to get his attention. The startled wolf looked to where Hige was pointing. He gasped at what lay in front of them. An enraged shopkeeper rushed around his up turned cart hastily picking up his stock. Muttering curses underneath his breath about some overgrown dog attacking his stall. Kiba and Hige made their way carefully towards the scene, keeping in mind they'd have to be fast.

"Damn dog, should all be put down! That's what I think. Put down! The lot of 'em!"

Hige licked his lips attempting to concentrate, the scent of fresh meat was making him feel light headed and giddy. He couldn't remember the last time he'd eaten. Last night? No, it felt much longer then that. Just how long had it been?

"Arggh more of you mangy mutts!" The shopkeeper had diverted his attention to the devious looking pair that crouched beneath his stall. "I couldn't catch that grey nuisance, but I'm definitely not letting you escape!"

"Hige! C'mon move it!" Kiba yelled, knowing Hige wouldn't leave food so easily. The tan wolf gave the food paradise one last look of regret and followed after Kiba into a dark alleyway.

Upon catching up to Kiba, they both stopped and panted for while. Eventually Hige spoke...

"I think all that commotion back there had something to do with Tsume."

Only after a few hours after his encounter with the dog warden, Tsume found himself crouching down in a cramped sewage pipe. The deeper he went the smaller it seemed to get. On the verge of turning back he tripped over a large fluffy mound. Not daring to turn into his human form, he nudged the lump hoping it would move. It didn't. He resorted to pushing it viciously with his paw. This time there was a response, a low pitched yelp and a set of teeth weakly clamped around Tsume's paw. Tsume growled and quickly pulled away his paw.

"Fine, if you won't move I'll make you!" he bit into the defenseless form and started to pull it to the way he'd come in. It struggled a little against his guard put eventually gave up and let itself be dragged.

Tsume could faintly make out the first signs of daylight, they were almost out. Mr. Stinger and Kian couldn't possibly have waited all that time just for one dog they had a grudge against. Or had they? Tsume pondered to himself. Their scent still remained, but not quite as distinct and foul as it had been before, but still there. He had no other choice he wanted rid of this stubborn creature that refused to abide with his requests.

The metallic taste of blood devoured any other in his mouth; he must have bit it quite hard. Momentarily he slithered out of the hole and pulled a brown wolf with him. He landed painfully on his side and grimaced in pain. After recomposing himself he turned around to find Toboe lying there, with a tranquilizer missile stuck in his back and a bloody bite mark in his neck. His eyes flickered open every now and then and he tried to get up.

A look of sheer horror on his face, Tsume rushed towards his fallen comrade.

"Toboe!" he snarled trying help the bedraggled wolf up." You idiot... why did you have to follow me. Why?!" No response. He nudged the younger wolf gently trying to get a response. Toboe forced his eyes to stay open, knowing they were too heavy to keep open for long. What was wrong with him? Why did he need to sleep so much? Sure, he was tired, but he'd never felt like this before. Another thing the puzzled the little wolf greatly was why Tsume seemed to be so angry.

Tenacious, he pushed himself up with a great effort, using every ounce of his strength.

The world around him was a distorted mess of shapes and wild colours; he could only just see Tsume. The grey wolf had started help him up.

"Toboe... you've been hit with a tranquilizer, keep still and you won't get hurt." Tsume explained to him letting the brown wolf lean on him. Toboe felt a great sure of regret and shame, like so many times before he had depending on Tsume for his life, without realizing it. He hated himself for doing it, but he couldn't stop himself. He wanted Tsume to think of him as a strong independent wolf not a clingy weakling. He desired so much just to be like Tsume, but any effort he made was wasted.

"You alright there kid? Those things are pretty strong..." Tsume sighed. "How do you get yourself into these problems?"

"T-they just happen... no matter where I go, no matter what I do, I always get myself into a mess and end up counting on you." Toboe stuttered his eyes begging him to let them fall. "You're probably fed up of risking your neck to save me. Or waiting so I can catch up, and I don't blame you Tsume. The only thing I wanted to have was a sense of belonging, a sense that I was wanted. If I ever did find it I've abused it, so much that it's slipped away into nothing." His eyes finally won the fight and he was pulled back into the world of dreams.

Tsume was left speechless; he'd never seen Toboe like this. He was usually the happiest of all of them, always happy resilient to depression. He wouldn't have expected Toboe to possess those sorts of feelings. Looking down on the sleeping wolf and analyzing his features, Tsume felt a great surge of sympathy flood through his body. Filling ever empty cold corner of him.

The hazy darkness of nightfall approached, Tsume had decided he'd stay here for the night; it seemed safe enough, for now at least. He settled down next to the younger wolf, and fell into sleep himself.

"Mr. - M- Mr. Stinger!" Kian called from the top of a pile of derelict rubble. His voice croaking as it had not broken properly yet."

Not so loud, are they asleep?" Mr. Stinger said as he emerged from the depths of his ancient artifact of a van. Kian nodded causing a collision in the rocks.

"Be careful, will you? The slightest noise will wake them up. Have you any idea of how much we could get for the pair?

"Uh... no Mr. Stinger, Sir, and no I haven't."

"We'll be made for life! Look at the size of the beasts! Think about the auctions for dogs strong enough to pull a sledge full of loot." His smile grew larger as he thought of the dreams he could finally carry out with all that money.

"B-but sir..."

"What is it?"

"Shouldn't we just hand them in to the pound?" Kian wasn't sure he'd said the right thing. The smile had gone from his master's face.

"Kian, if you tell anyone, and I mean anyone at all. If you tell them, you won't live to see the day that you regret it! Now, get over here and take a look at this." Kian ambled carefully over to Mr. Stinger, almost tripping over a large clump of rocks as he passed them. As he got closer, his master pulled something from underneath his van. It was slim in shape, and looked almost like a harpoon.

"Now, look at this Kian my lad." He started, Kian looked greatly confused. "This is what's gunna completely destroy that big one's energy. It's powerful, one of the most powerful tranquilizers you could say. But look, I only have the one, and that's where you come in." He handed Kian a large club. "See that brown one?" Kian nodded. "I want you to whack him hard enough to knock him out again incase he's recovered. Got that?"

"Y-Yeah, I can do that." Kian said as he started towards the alleyway.

"Oh and Kian? Try no to mess things up this time. Without another word, Kian positioned himself behind the wall out of sight. Mr. Stinger busied himself loading the harpoon like weapon, he watched Kian with a steady eye. Praying that he'd get it right this time and he could go home a rich man. The gun was prepared; he climbed to the top of the small rock mountain again. Taking great caution not to knock anything.

He'd reached the top and was peering over the wall glaring in the awe of his new found fortune. Harpoon in place and aim readied he took a few seconds to countdown before he shot.

After a few moments Kian heard a loud yelp of anguish, he knew it was his time to act. Determined to succeed for just once, he leapt out from his hiding place to play his part in the making of Mr. Stinger's fortune. Just as Mr. Stinger had told him, the grey wolf lay unconscious while the brown one pawed at it desperately whining and howling. Kian brought all of his courage together and charged into battle.

"Tsume! Tsume! Wake up! No, don't be dead! Don't be dead." Toboe pawed frantically at his friend in panic. Tears filling his golden eyes, he didn't want to lose another he'd grown so close to. Tsume's eyes slowly opened only to shut again in a matter of seconds. The petrified wolf gave a sigh of relief, as long as Tsume was alright, he was too. However the danger was far from over. They were back. He could hear the demonic laughter from Mr. Stinger, pleased that he'd hit his target. But where was the other?

"Get 'im Kian! One hard hit!" he laughed madly to himself. Toboe jumped around to face the teenage wreck. He was holding a weapon that Toboe assumed he was going to use on him. He wanted to run away and hide so much... no. He couldn't leave Tsume. He had only one choice, stand his ground and fight with honor. Snarling, his teeth scarped against each other his throat delivered blood curdling growls of enragement. Kian paused and began to tremble.

"KIAN! Hit the damned beast! Hit him! Damnit I'll do it myself." Hastily looking for something to throw at the wolf, a saddened howl echoed against the night sky. He couldn't leave it another second; a large rock would be adequate for now.

Toboe had his attacker where he wanted him, although it wasn't like Toboe to injure a human, he only persisted with his aggressive behavior to protect Tsume. "Protect Tsume..." the words sounded odd in his mind. Maybe he could finally prove himself to be of some worth to the pack. He gazed up proudly at the night sky, it's embroidery of stars shining as radiant as they ever had. The moon was missing; it usually did after the night of a full one. It made Toboe feel a little uncomfortable. In fact he felt generally uncomfortable; everything was running according to plan. That never happened.

"Something bad is going to happen..."He knew it; he felt its lingering presence around him. Was Kian going to do something unexpectedly? No. He was far too afraid of Toboe, he wouldn't. The answer came in the form of an immensely hard knock on the head. For the second time that day Toboe's vision blurred and the familiar deathly feeling returned. He could feel a wetness dribbling slowly down his face, pain ebbed into the whole of his body, he just wanted to lie down and sleep.

"I-I-I can't leave Tsume!" he howled in despair. Soon after the first impact came another and this time it defeated him. Slipping slowly to the ground in the quickly expanding lake of ruby liquid. He embraced sleep and knew no more.

"AH HA! Did you see that Kian my lad? Did you see that? Got him right in the center of that arrogant head of his. Ha yes!" Mr. Stinger rejoiced leaping over the wall to collect his trophies. "Ah Kian, we'll be rich. Think of it... all that precious m-" he stopped as his gaze hovered over Toboe's bruised and battered body. He bent down to the motionless body checking for a pulse. Relieved when he found one he slung the wolf over his shoulder. The blood stained his already dirt encrusted jacket.

"Get the other Kian, that's if you can manage him?" Kian jumped at the call of his name, he was still in the inner hallways of shock. Mr. Stinger gave him a strong look of disrespect. Sighing, he picked himself up and made his way to the grey wolf.

"There's a lad, you'll see. We'll be rich in no time at all."

"Did you hear that?" Kiba awoke from his slumber to hear Hige mourning.

"It's probably that man looking for us. We'd better move on anyway, I don't care for these surroundings. He said tilted his head towards the rat plagued alleyway.

"No, Kiba it was a howl. It sounded like Toboe."

"Was it close?" Kiba wondered whether Toboe was calling them to reunite and leave. He perked up a little; he wanted to leave the city. "Let's go find him." Both in human forms, they pushed their way out to the main road of the city.

A rusted van with a peculiar scent had stopped by the lights. Hige's nose immediately picked up on it. A very familiar scent, but what? He moved in for a closer look when a tall boy about his age exited the van.

"Hey, you can't go back there!" he yelled noticing the boy's sudden interest in the van.

"Oh really? Why is that then?" Hige questioned the amusing stranger; he couldn't help but laugh at the guy. The boy lowered his head and glanced around nervously. "Can you keep a secret?"

"Sure." What and idiot, Hige thought quietly to himself. What would possess you to walk up to a stranger in the street and tell him all your secrets? Not a wise thing, Hige was sure, but still he was curious.

"I and Mr. S just bagged ourselves some prime dog gold." he mused excitedly

"Prime dog gold?"

"Yeah, two gigantic dogs the size of bears you could almost say and-"

"Kian, get back in the van, will you? They're expecting us in two hours." Mr. Stinger called from the van growing steadily more inpatient. Kian gave Hige a wink and strided back towards the van.

"Gigantic dogs... Did he mean wolves?" Hige wondered.

"What about wolves?" Kiba had noticed Hige's absence. Hige ignored him; two dogs the size of bears... He couldn't possibly mean!? As the lights turned green and the van sped of from his eye shot, a feeling of loss came over him. He looked at Kiba and with guilty eyes; he didn't know how to break the news to the leader.

"Hige, what is it?"

"I don't think Toboe's howl was for a meeting. No. I think it was something far more serious. It was a plea for help..."

Chapter 3 coming soon…


	3. Ch3 The caged, the free and the recaptu...

A/N

This chapter took a long while to write. I've had a massive writer's block and many other distractions besides. I'm unsure to whether to continue after this chapter of not.

I've got a bad feeling it's a load of boring drabble that leads off to nowhere. I need some more opinions on it really...

So read and review please and more importantly be truthful it helps a great deal :)

Thanks, I'll shut up now and start the next chapter now. Enjoy!

-

"Wolf... I couldn't help but notice your lingering presence in my realm of dreams. You've been here a long while, much time has passed by.

The world of the living will have grown darker in the hours of your absence. And the ones important to you have come to forget your existence.

Why do you remain here? There is nothing here but shattered dreams and unfulfilled prophecies. A dead world, long past its best. It is a greatly despised and hated place. Why do you remain?"

A vast wasteland of death reflected back into a pair of lost, autumn eyes. Tsume was certain he was lost. He'd been wandering endlessly around the deserted plain, growing more uneasy by the second.

He as alone, aside from the unfriendly voice, which seemed to take great pleasure in continuously questioning him about his purpose here. In truth, he hadn't the slightest incline to where he was.

Nothing alive inhabited this particular place it seemed. The emptiness disturbed him the most; any form of plantation was scarce. Jagged boulders swamped the dusty ground, Tsume just happened to be standing on the very edge of a rather large one.

"Stay here forever, with me."

The haunting voice came again, carrying with it a mild sandstorm. Tsume raised his arm to shield his eyes. Unsure to whether to voice was real, he gave a warning snarl.

"Angry? Why? Don't you want to remain here? Or would you rather return to your past life?"

Some many questions without an answer. Tsume knew he had to respond; his escape depended on it.

"I want to go back, that is all." He said, choosing his words cautiously. He wanted to leave this god forsaken place for good. Even the torments of reality were more tolerable compared to this ghost land.

"If that is what you desire, then back you shall go, but always remember wolf. The answer you seek lies in the dense shroud of sleep. Now awaken, and remember nothing..."

Upon opening his eyes, Tsume found himself in a prison cell. Small and cramped in size, there was barely enough room for him to stand. The walls were washed in a monotone grey colour that immediately smothered out any potential light.

This place was almost as foreboding as his obscure dream. Which he could barely remember. Though it remained vague in the pit of his mind, it still bore some sense of significance. He didn't dare dwell on thought of it any longer.

Still unaware of his current location, he crawled nearer to the bars for a closer look.

Cages, many of them. Stacked on top of each other in a large, dimly lit hallway. Saddened faces returned his stare, their spirits broken. They whimpered to each other in pained mourns, trying to attract the new canine's attention.

The cage opposite to him contained a battered, auburn wolf. Its head was poorly wrapped in scarlet stained bandages. The expression on its face made the sight even more unbearable for Tsume.

"Toboe!" He barked to the opposite cage. "What did they do to you?!"

The younger wolf lifted his head to reply but found himself back on the ground shortly.

"Tsume... I thought you were dead, you've been out for nearly a whole day!" He said looking reasonably calm and relieved at the same time.

Tsume gasped, how could that be? It didn't feel like he'd been gone for that long. All he could remember was wandering in the unusual desert, constantly being tormented by the unnerving voice of a phantasmal creature.

Toboe watched him with his one good eye, waiting for a response.

"Where is this place?" Tsume finally said.

"I don't know. All I know is that this place is a torture chamber. The dog in the cell above you was shot yesterday because he lost the use of his back legs! Tsume, I don't want either of us to end up like that." Toboe answered throwing a repulsive look to the cell above the grey wolf.

There was a loud scrapping noise to the western entrance to the hall, someone was coming in. As the door opened a river of light illuminated into the dismal hall. Furious barking began and a sinister figure entered.

Meanwhile...

It was early morning in the city, and all aside from the two lone figures had yet to awaken. Both of their faces grim, they awaited a plan of action from one another.

"Kiba..." Hige began. "They'll be dead before we rescue them at this rate." He sighed, he knew Kiba wasn't much of a conversation, but at a time as dire as this it seemed awkward.

The dark haired boy watched the traffic begin to build up. Just where had Tsume and Toboe been taken to?

"We only have one choice." He said with an effort.

"And that is?" questioned Hige.

"If your nose has stayed as accurate as it has been in the past. We could follow their scent." he said looking over to a crowd of giggling girls forming behind them. Hige jumped as he turned round and began blushing madly. The sight of all those girls made him feel a little nervous.

"We'd better be going..." Kiba muttered underneath his breath, he didn't want to be stood watching Hige flirt wit girls for hours on end. However he was too late.

"So you're Hige and who's your shy friend over there?" One of the prettier girls said, looking towards a reclusive Kiba. Hige laughed blushing even more.

"Ah, that's Kiba." He said, while the white wolf gave him an annoyed look. He gulped, the first time in monthes he'd been able to talk to girls and he had to leave

After only a brief greeting. "Yeah, we had better be going. Some people are depending on us." He said grimily, watching the girls disappointed faces in regret.

Kiba gave a small grin; he knew it was difficult for Hige to give up girls. But some sacrifices had to be made; life would never be as easy as it used to be.

Two of the darker haired girls had pushed their way to the front in hope of speaking to the two mysterious strangers. As Kiba and Hige departed they both made a grab for their arms.

"Wait! Where are you guys staying? Maybe we could hang out later" the older of the two said giving Hige the puppy eyed look, that he often found himself melting into. He fell for it as usual.

"Yeah, sure we're staying at the uh..." He glanced around the courtyard, seeking out a hotel name. "The Indigo Plaza" he settled on, acknowledging the incredibly bright

advertisement attached to a bus shelter. He knew it was a lie, but he didn't want to see tears in their eyes. Kiba wasn't pleased; he leant against the wall in a sulk. Daydreaming about Cheza

Hige assumed.

"So what brings you guys to Eclipse?" asked the dark haired girl, she thought she'd convinced them to stay for a while.

"Eclipse?" Hige asked puzzled.

"It's the name of the city, silly. You really are new around, here aren't you? She giggled soon joined by the rest of her gang. Hige laughed along with them, while Kiba folded his arms protectively.

Eclipse... that name had some sort of connection with the moon. Kiba thought to himself, distracted from Cheza. An idea suddenly struck him but he dismissed it quickly when he saw the group of girls

Change the topic of conversation. Even so, it was question that desperately needed to be asked.

"Oh what a lovely collar!" squeaked a small blond girl. "It looks so cute on you." By now Hige had gone far beyond embarrassment and stood there grinning wildly. Kiba walked over to the crowd slowly, he was tired of waiting for others.

"Is there a dog sanctuary of some sort around here?" He said making most of the girls jump. They whispered among each other before giving him an answer.

"Yes, there is one, but I should warn you. If you're looking for a new pet try elsewhere. Dogs that come out of that place have usually gone insane." said one of the dark haired girls cautiously.

"They're horrible and vicious!" wailed the other. Kiba nodded but still awaited an answer. Hige had become jealous now all the attention was focused on Kiba. Abruptly the crowd of girls parted to make a clear pathway for what looked like the leader of the gang. She was average in every aspect; nothing seemed to make her much different from the others. Except for the look of authority she carried proudly in her dark oak eyes.

"It's about a few hours from here. If you keep heading to the north side of Eclipse, and stay to the roads. Eventually you'll come to a fork in the road, take the left turning and continue up there until you see a tall fence." she gestured to the main road pointing in a northerly direction. "That's all I know, past the fence and then I'm afraid you're on your own." Kiba followed her gestures to see the last part of the city before it turned back to wilderness. It didn't look remarkably far at all. He then noticed there were several pairs of adoring eyes pinned on him.

"He's so messy and rugged." he heard a few times, not that it bothered him.

"C'mon girls, we'd better get moving or we'll be late for school." said the leader finally. There were many moans and grunts of protest but they soon headed off to a large steep building. "Nice meeting you guys, good luck on your

business." she gave them a knowing wink before running off to join her rabble.

Hige sighed, that was probably his last chance to communicate with girls for a while. He wondered whether they really could meet up later.

"Not likely." Kiba said, almost reading his mind. He had a bad habit of doing that, it annoyed Hige immensely.

"We'd better get going too." Hige said trying to change the subject. Tsume and Toboe were probably being tortured as they spoke. With a determined look in his eyes, he lunged into a hard run soon followed by Kiba.

From afar the leader of the gang of school girls watched in interest, as the two boys ran off into the distance.

"Whoever you are and where ever you come from, I know you're not normal and you're hiding something, that I can't quite put my finger on." she said with a mischievous grin.

"Ilandra? Are you coming or what?" Ilandra turned around to see the dark haired sisters waiting impatiently.

"Yes, just give me a moment."

"Well hurry up, okay?"

"Sure" and with that all three girls hurried into school to begin another day.

Heavy footsteps and labored breathing could be heard Cleary through the infuriated barking. Tsume squeezed his head in-between the bars to find the cause of the sounds. An unpleasant musty smell blew into his nose, and irritated his throat.

He backed away deeper into his cell seeking refuge from the loathsome odor.

The deliberately loud footsteps continued, growing into a pattern. They stopped every now and then, for the owner to choke back another agonizing cough. What ever it was, it was fast approaching Tsume's cell, and he was almost certain it would stop and glare. Either at him or Toboe. Who also watched warily.

He staggered through the cellblock he'd obviously had far too much to drink. Each dog looked upon him in hatred as he passed their cells. One particularly bad tempered one attempted to bite him through the bars. He promptly threw his empty wine bottle at in retaliation.

None of the dogs bothered him after that and went back to their usual ghostly ways. When he came upon the two new prisoners, he stopped again. And glared at them with his critical eyes. Trying to find faults with each of them. He didn't feel comfortable with the suspicious eye the gray one gave him. There was something strange about that dog, and the other. The brown canine seemed to be the tamer of the two. He couldn't be sure; it was in not fit state to fight back. He smiled to himself; they were both incredibly large and strong. His sled team needed stronger workers. He quite fancied the grey one as his lead.

"Ahh, Mr. Qeulle, I see you've found our best stock." Came an eerie voice from the entrance. Mr. Stinger stepped in, wearing his grimy apron over his disfigured attire. Bearing an evil smirk he put an arm around his customer and brought his bloodshot eyes over the two wolves.

Dark silhouettes hovered around Tsume's cage; it was beginning to aggravate the wolf. He didn't know how much longer he could remain calm.

"So you want the pair, eh?" Mr. Stinger said trying to force as much shock into his voice as possible. Money still plagued the mans selfish mind, money that was all. He'd told Kian that he'd contact him when the dogs had been sold. Truthfully he had no intention of giving Kian even the tiniest sum of money from his haul.

"Hmm, yes, they would prove very useful farther up north." Replied Mr. Quelle, surveying his sale carefully. Mr. Stinger rubbed his hands together greedily and led his customer to the back room to negotiate a price.

The doors closed and darkness returned.

"Tsume, we have to escape now or we'll be sold!" Toboe said, panic stricken. He was standing quite easily now and the life had returned to his eyes.

"I'm well aware." Tsume replied coolly, Toboe was already annoying him.

"How to we get out?" Toboe said anxiously watching the door the two men had recently exited .Anytime now they'd be back to collect them. They desperately needed to think of an escape plan quickly.

Was there even a possible way out? The bars on the cages looked too strong for even Kiba to break, and the ground around them was made from solid stone, so the digging option was useless.

The latches on the doors were kept well hidden behind a padlocked cabinet, just to the left of the grey wolf's cell. If only he could reach it.

Transforming back into his human form, he slipped his arm through one of the bar intervals. It was quite a tight squeeze but he managed to get most of his arm through.

Watching Tsume's effort from his own cell, Toboe felt a great urge to assist him; after all he was quite flexible and slim. He contemplated the idea for a while and decided to carry it out. Tsume wasn't having much success; he'd managed to get within reach of the padlock but had failed to open it as he couldn't reach any further. Beads of sweat dribbled down his forehead from the strain and he finally withdrew his arm. Without thinking he changed back to his wolf form and started to chew at the bars aggressively.

"Stop it; you'll just end up hurting yourself." The brown wolf said concerned. Tsume didn't take heed of his warnings and carried on with his biting madness. It was left to Toboe, whom had his doubts of being able to fit between the tight gaps. But he had to try.

Returning to his human form for the first time in a long while, he leant against the wall and side stepped until he reached the bars. Then carefully he maneuvered his body through the bars. Feeling the cold bars push against his body in protest sent a feeling of fear into the pit of his empty stomach.

The bars let out a high pitched screeching sound as he pushed his way out, alerting most of the other dogs to his movement. Only Tsume didn't seem to notice; he was far too busy biting at his iron bar. Toboe gulped, he hoped against hope the other dogs wouldn't bark at him. Even the quietest noise would attract

Mr. Stinger's unwanted attention.

Now only a few centimeters away from his target, Toboe glanced around to see if it was safe to leave his cell completely. He was just about satisfied, although some of the confused faces that watched him intently caused him some anxiety. I've got nothing to lose, he thought, not wanting to leave it another second.

In the poor light, he could vaguely make out the lock. The locking mechanism didn't look to complex; a pick at it wouldn't go to waste.

Plunging his claw into the keyhole, he fiddled around with it until he finally heard a triumphant click. The cabinet door swung open revealing a single switch, which was currently set to the 'closed' setting.

"Hey kid, how'd you get out?!" Tsume said in surprise, finally distracted from his biting.

"Through the bars. Listen, all I need to do is flick this switch and you're free."

Tsume was astonished, the one he'd suspected of being weak and a waste of space had finally proved his worth. For the very first time he gave the modest wolf a proud smile.

"Go ahead kid." He said with a sparkle of excitement in his eyes.

Toboe flicked the switch, and at that precise moment every cell door swung open. A sea of overjoyed canines flooded to their freedom, all of them barking in rejoice. Toboe couldn't help but join in; he felt as if he'd performed some great deed and saved the day.

"Shut up Toboe!" Tsume yelled loudly over all the commotion. "You were meant to switch the individual cell keys not the master key. Dammit kid, I doubt we'll escape unnoticed now."

His eyes downcast, Toboe felt the familiar feeling of shame sweep over him. His only chance to prove he wasn't just a kid that couldn't fight to protect him and others, and he'd ruined it.

"Ah, I didn't think..." He said flinching from underneath Tsume's fiery gaze. He wasn't heard, Tsume was already snarling orders at the dogs to shut up. Surprisingly they obeyed him, and started clawing at the gate that led to outside and their escape. The other door leading to the back room remained closed, but just for how long?

They'd made sufficient progress, and the gate was on its final grate. Soon they'd be out to return to the place they belonged to. Either a busy city street or beside a warm fireplace surrounded by human companions. Every one of them different in some way or form. Toboe was certain. He wondered what it would be like to be back living with the old lady right now...

He wouldn't be in this mess, but then again he might have never befriended Tsume, Kiba and Hige. Such things were yet another worry on the young wolf's mind. He sharply brought his attention back to the situation as a door handle was slowly twisted announcing the return of Mr. Stinger and his customer.

"What!?" Mr. Stinger said infuriated but the sight in front of him. "How could this possibly have happened?!" He stormed towards the first of his collection, which just happened to be Toboe.

"Toboe! Run you idiot!" Tsume yelled as the last few dogs ran for their lives.

"Oh my goodness!" exclaimed Mr. Quelle exposing his Northern accent. "Get that brown one, he's one of mine and where's the other?!" His tiny eyes darted around the hallway. Toboe had only a short time to react as the enraged dog warden leapt onto him, grasping a clump of fur to hold him back with. He squirmed frantically under the human's strong grip, his claws scrapping against the

stone floor trying to hold onto something. In his struggle he looked over to where Tsume had been standing, it was now empty. He was obviously sick of rescuing him and decided to leave him be. "It had to happen sometime..." Toboe whispered fighting back the tears. He was alone now, and any chance of escape had been and gone. With no other choice he let out a tragic howl, and continued trying to break free of his human captors.

---

Trudging unwillingly through the dense forest, Kiba and Hige were suddenly pulled to a sharp halt. A pained howl echoed against the morning sky, startling a few unwary birds from their winter slumbers.

They both turned to face one another, urgency clearly visible through their faces. They'd traveled for a good deal of the morning, and made much progress. Ilandra really had told them the correct directions, as Hige had reminded Kiba many times on their short journey.

And as the howl sounded, for a second time. Both wolves have sped off towards the fence, with only one sole purpose in mind.

The fence itself was well suited to its duties. Either to keep everyone and everything in or the exact opposite. Made purely from solid steel, they stood high above the main building.

Determind, Kiba confidently launched himself towards the fence, only to come flying and landing in a heap.

"So, I see we can't get in that way, eh? Hige said half laughing. Kiba hastily sprang back onto his feet, rubbing the newly formed graze on his head. Somehow they'd get in; he just had to find out how. And sure enough the answer lay right below his very feet.

"Start digging." he said calmly, while lowering his paw into the existing hole. Hige tilted his head to side in confusion; he couldn't possibly mean digging a tunnel under the fence. Could he? It certainly looked that way, but Hige was dubious to whether traps had been set up.

"Start digging." Kiba repeated, nearly half way under the fence. Hesitantly, he joined the white wolf, remembering he could use this to blackmail Toboe in the future. Crumbs of earth were flying all over the place, some hitting Hige in the face much to his annoyance. They persisted until a hole large enough for the both of them to fit through emerged.

Not too far away, Tsume crouched beneath an empty barrel, trying to hide from the human's prying eyes. Toboe had gone his own way, which was unlike him. Tsume thought to himself, watching the empty yard. He hadn't been followed; most of the other dogs had stupidly run off to the front offices. Where they'd be captured and re-caged soon enough.

He was surprised to see a white and tan pair of wolves run discreetly across the yard.

"Kiba!"

The white wolf skidded himself to an unsteady stop and glanced over to the area in which the noise had come from.

"Wow, a talking barrel that knows your name." Hige chirped up, attempting to bring humor into the situation.

"That was pathetic." came a dispescful voice. Tsume stepped out from beneath barrel, with a sly look upon his face. "You're better just keeping to eating; the world of humour isn't for individuals, such as yourself."

"Would you look at that? Tsume's showing us how grateful he is for us rescuing him." Hige replied, knowing it would irritate the gray wolf immensely. Tsume ignored Hige's taunts. Not even worth my attention, he thought.

"Where's Toboe?" Kiba interrogated, noticing the absence of the brown wolf. Tsume explained to them about the whole fiasco of an escape and how he had no other chance but to leave him be. However, he still wasn't certain himself, why'd he left. Maybe it was fear of being captured again or maybe it was something much more personal. Whatever it was, he felt shamefully guilty and wished he had acted.

Hige tucked his hands in his pockets, rummaging around for something to amuse himself with. His idol fingers touched the cool surface of an item which had great sentimental value to him. As he let his fingers stray, he felt a warm feeling, pulsating against his heart. It thrilled every bone in his body. This had only happened once before, a long while ago. When Cheza still accompanied them. Strangely, it had grown weaker the day after she was stolen by Darcia.

The air around him smelt pleasant, almost like flowers. And as the aroma tangled itself around his mind presenting to him scenes of a paradise, he smiled.

"This is no time to be grinning!" Tsume snarled.

"Sorry... just felt so good. Like when we were with-" he was cut of by Kiba.

"Cheza." He said finishing Hige's sentence for him. "She is here, or someone that's been near her recently is." He began drifting into his trance seeking her voice.

The scent remained strong, and stronger still as Hige neared the building. Spiraling pathways led him to a demolished gate, he could faintly hear voices and scratch like noises. Twisting his head around the doorway, to investigate the intoxicating breeze. He gasped as a forlorn wolf was held down firmly, by cruel hands. Hopelessly tossing and fraying against their vice grip.

Overwhelmed with burning fury, he strode directly towards the culprit bearing his fangs. Punishment towards an innocent wolf didn't make sense. And drove him to a part of himself, which was rarely seen.

Watching his friend charge forth into Mr. Stinger, Toboe felt the hard grasp finally loosen and relinquish from preventing his escape. Agonizing screams erupted from Mr. Stingers mouth, as a sharp set of teeth was embedded in the nape of his neck. Scarlet fluid was spurting out of him, similar to the motion of a fountain. The helpless human, clamped a trembling hand over his gushing wound, in hope of averting the bleeding.

Hige had managed to regain his composure, and observed Mr. Stinger's floundering in amusement. The other wolf remained silent, conscious to the arising tension that moment. Instead his eyes followed the small puddles of blood, developing into small lakes. A side of Hige he didn't know had been exposed only a few moments ago, he wondered if one day he'd too transform into a nightmarish creature as ferocious as Hige. Shuddering at the very thought, he started towards the exit without looking back. Mr. Stinger lay motionless on the ground, his face growling paler and his temperature slowly slipping away.

When the attack had first started, he'd hidden behind the door for cover. While he was there he'd stumbled across a few tranquilizer darts. Mr. Quelle knew very well his aim was atrocious. But he'd been guaranteed dogs of the strongest endurance, and he wasn't about to surrender to a small pack of dogs. He monitored the situation carefully. The small brown one had wandered toward the outside yard, whereas the aggressive one still stood over its prey.

He flinched at the horrific sight, with the remains of Mr. Stinger's corpse draped loosely around its fangs. It stood just inches away from him eagerly awaiting his return. The first signs of perspiration dribbled lazily down his forehead, announcing the fear he had for the wolf. He fiddled around nervously with the small darts that lay across the palm of his hand. The appropriate time to use them would be now, but he couldn't muster the courage to take aim.

Perhaps its attention could be distracted someway.

Outside, there was solemn silence. Neither Kiba nor Tsume spoke a word. Both too involved in their own matters. Kiba daydreamed while Tsume paced up and down anxiously. The sky dulled as the mundane haze of snow silently returned.

"Another blizzard is about to arrive." Tsume stated, breaking the silence.

"A blizzard..." Kiba repeated his words. After continuously searching, he'd found the source of the scent. Parked carelessly over two spaces, a large van emitted the fragrance, which Kiba desired. Imprinted on the rear end, was a logo. He couldn't figure out what it resembled.

"He's been in there too long, I'm going in" Tsume announced, looking toward the hallway of cells.

"I'll come with you..." Kiba whispered, almost too quiet for Tsume to hear. Tsume in the lead, both wolves cautiously approached the opening. A veil of darkness prevented them for seeing inside, but still they continued. Blood had been spilt, Kiba could sense it. Human's blood he was certain.

Together they padded toward the first set of cells, where Toboe stood in wait.

Four of them, all in good range. Mr. Quelle knew the time had arrived; three of them sniffed and pawed at each other in excitement, reunited. However the aggressive beast still lingered back, awaiting his mistake. Out of sheer impulse, Mr. Quelle. Hurled a small, streamlined dart toward the white wolf.

Hige's ears pricked up at the loud whistling noise closely followed by a surprised yelp. He spun around seeking out Toboe, forgetting the reason he'd kept a vigilant eye out for the return of the remaining human. He could feel the warm presence of his companions, they were obviously messing about. Proved wrong, as another dart whistled through the air, and this time he was the target. Startled, he broke into as faster run as he could muster. Fatigue was already upon him, and he could hear frantic footsteps behind him. In the little time he had left he called out for assistance from the other wolves. Tsume and Toboe came running but were soon defeated by the dexterity of Mr. Quelle. He's used the same darts, as he had on Kiba and himself.

A thought suddenly dawned on him; he was the only one left conscious. Tiredness crept slowly over him pleading with him to fall asleep. But he couldn't; not while the others were in that condition.

"Hmph, one was enough for the others. But I supposed you are the largest. Maybe another shot will desecrate that energy of yours." a frustrated voice murmured, already plotting its next move. The owner now stepping out confidently, eyeing him conspicuously. Hige knew what would happen next, it was hopeless running away. His energy had left him, swallowed by the tranquilizer. His friends, lying motionless on the ground a few yards away. The event was imminent.

He stood there reluctantly awaiting the second dart. Something much different happened, some sort of rope was tied around his collar. What on earth is he doing? He can finish me off now, and he's just going to leash me. Doesn't make any sense. He thought to himself, slowly becoming more agitated.

"C'mon now, I've got a nice place up north where you and your friends can stay." Mr. Quelle said, attempting to persuade Hige to move. The tan wolf, gave him a hard time; turning limp and heavy every time the human tried to force move him. There was a small chance, that if he delayed enough, the other's would awaken and thwart his plan. "I don't usually do this to dogs so new in my squad. But you've just about pushed my patience as far as it will go!" Mr. Quelle said, rage evident in his voice.

From his leather coat pocket he removed a thin stick, coated in a glossy metal finish. He held it high above Hige's head in a threatening manner, warning the wolf for the very last time." See this my friend? We call this little beauty the whip, and I think you'll be seeing quite a lot of her." He said, as the thin line on his face curved into a menacing smirk. Sullen eyes followed his weapon as he rotated around the wolf's body. With no further hesitation he brought the whip down violently on Hige's back.

Hige clenched his teeth, as the burning pain expelled its full force upon his body. He wanted to lick his wound clean already, but as the whip was summoned again. He began to obey orders, unwillingly. "There's a good boy. Now you see, with just a little persuasion every dog serves happily under my command." Mr. Quelle said proudly, feeling accomplished.

Three heaps lay to one side of the path as they walked by. Hige was glad they were asleep, especially Kiba. If anyone of them saw him being controlled by a human, he feared the shame would kill him. The human crouched down and tied ropes around their necks in turn. "Ah, I'll have to drag these lot." he said his voice quavering under the weight of the three wolves.

Snow flakes were slowly descending from the sky, placing themselves delicately on the exhausted wolf's body. As they twirled and waltzed along his stare, he began to wonder where life would lead him next. The three wolves, dragged without knowing, showed not even the slightest sign of waking up.

The car park stood empty, save for one lone van belonging to Mr. Quelle. Unlike its dismal, lifeless surroundings, the van struck a lustrous emerald colour. It lifted Hige's spirits a little, any sign of life and colour struck a chord of thrill throughout his body.

Mr. Quelle had brought them to the rear end of the van, where a large door stood open. Revealing its interior - packed with large cages, some already occupied by ashen creatures, Hige had never seen before. They didn't even stir when the four wolves were loaded into cages. Hige couldn't believe he was going through with this, he felt as if he should be engulfed in anger but he stayed calm.

A tranquil scent subdued any growing fear he possessed, he remembered this particular scent. And as Kiba had said before, it must be Cheza. But where was she? And how did she end up in a place as somber as this? Too many questions whispered into his ears, begging to be answered. Drowsiness greeted him again inviting him to enter a warm comforting sleep. This time he had no choice but to accept.

Yet another note

I've started to add names to the chapters. Maybe it will add excitement to the story. Or possibly not: P

Okay so as normal Chapter 4 coming soon depending on response...


End file.
